Fenny Compton railway station
Encyclopedia
Fenny Compton railway station was a railway station serving Fenny Compton
in the English
county of Warwickshire
.
in 1852 on its Oxford and Rugby Railway and would have formed the junction of with its proposed Birmingham and Oxford Junction Railway. In 1871, the East and West Junction Railway opened its own Fenny Compton West station
directly next to it on its line between Stratford-upon-Avon
and Towcester
.
The GWR lines had a troubled beginning. The Oxford and Rugby Railway Act had been passed in 1846, and a single track broad gauge
line was opened in 1850 between Oxford and Banbury. In 1846 approval had also been sought for the Birmingham and Oxford Junction Railway. The two lines would join at a point two miles to the north of Fenny Compton, near Knightcote, and would connect at Oxford with the Great Western line from London Paddington. The government considered that the lines would provide useful competition for the London and Birmingham Railway
which had become part of the London and North Western Railway
. They gave approval subject to the lines being bought and operated by the Great Western. To discourage the GWR from proceeding, the LNWR approached the shareholders of the Oxford and Birmingham Company individually to buy their shares with view to forcing the price as high as possible - resulting in questions being asked in Parliament.
However, while the Railway Regulation (Gauge) Act 1846
required that all new railways should be built to standard gauge
, the GWR had been given a number of dispensations to continue with its broad gauge, including its lines from Oxford. The question arose of where the change of gauge should occur - Oxford or Rugby - a dilemma the LNWR doubless exploited. If the latter it would mean the GWR having a section of standard gauge line, including part of its Birmingham line. As a result, in August 1849 the Rugby line was abandoned, Then in 1848 Parliament ordered that the Oxford to Birmingham line should be relaid to mixed gauge. By 1889 it was finally laid to standard gauge.
Fenny Compton station closed to passengers from 2 November 1964. The GWR line remains as the present day Didcot
to Chester
line. A stub of the Stratford upon Avon line remains as a freight line leading to the Kineton Military Railway
. The station trackwork remains much as it was, but the platforms and most of the buildings have gone. Heading north from Fenny Compton towards , the line curves gently to the right, on a course which would have taken it to Rugby via Southam. After about two miles, the line starts to curve to the left, and at this point , it is still possible to see earthworks for the abandoned Rugby line curving away to the right.
Fenny Compton
Fenny Compton is a village and parish in Warwickshire, England, about eight miles north of Banbury. In the 2001 census the parish had a population of 797. Its church of St. Peter and St. Clare was built in the 14th century...
in the English
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
county of Warwickshire
Warwickshire
Warwickshire is a landlocked non-metropolitan county in the West Midlands region of England. The county town is Warwick, although the largest town is Nuneaton. The county is famous for being the birthplace of William Shakespeare...
.
History
It was opened by Great Western RailwayGreat Western Railway
The Great Western Railway was a British railway company that linked London with the south-west and west of England and most of Wales. It was founded in 1833, received its enabling Act of Parliament in 1835 and ran its first trains in 1838...
in 1852 on its Oxford and Rugby Railway and would have formed the junction of with its proposed Birmingham and Oxford Junction Railway. In 1871, the East and West Junction Railway opened its own Fenny Compton West station
Fenny Compton West railway station
Fenny Compton West railway station was a railway station serving Fenny Compton in the English county of Warwickshire.-History:It was opened by East and West Junction Railway between Stratford upon Avon and...
directly next to it on its line between Stratford-upon-Avon
Stratford-upon-Avon
Stratford-upon-Avon is a market town and civil parish in south Warwickshire, England. It lies on the River Avon, south east of Birmingham and south west of Warwick. It is the largest and most populous town of the District of Stratford-on-Avon, which uses the term "on" to indicate that it covers...
and Towcester
Towcester
Towcester , the Roman town of Lactodorum, is a small town in south Northamptonshire, England.-Etymology:Towcester comes from the Old English Tófe-ceaster. Tófe refers to the River Tove; Bosworth and Toller compare it to the "Scandinavian proper names" Tófi and Tófa...
.
The GWR lines had a troubled beginning. The Oxford and Rugby Railway Act had been passed in 1846, and a single track broad gauge
Broad gauge
Broad-gauge railways use a track gauge greater than the standard gauge of .- List :For list see: List of broad gauges, by gauge and country- History :...
line was opened in 1850 between Oxford and Banbury. In 1846 approval had also been sought for the Birmingham and Oxford Junction Railway. The two lines would join at a point two miles to the north of Fenny Compton, near Knightcote, and would connect at Oxford with the Great Western line from London Paddington. The government considered that the lines would provide useful competition for the London and Birmingham Railway
London and Birmingham Railway
The London and Birmingham Railway was an early railway company in the United Kingdom from 1833 to 1846, when it became part of the London and North Western Railway ....
which had become part of the London and North Western Railway
London and North Western Railway
The London and North Western Railway was a British railway company between 1846 and 1922. It was created by the merger of three companies – the Grand Junction Railway, the London and Birmingham Railway and the Manchester and Birmingham Railway...
. They gave approval subject to the lines being bought and operated by the Great Western. To discourage the GWR from proceeding, the LNWR approached the shareholders of the Oxford and Birmingham Company individually to buy their shares with view to forcing the price as high as possible - resulting in questions being asked in Parliament.
However, while the Railway Regulation (Gauge) Act 1846
Railway Regulation (Gauge) Act 1846
The Railway Regulation Act 1846 introduced mandated standard gauges of for Great Britain, and for Ireland. This signalled the end for Brunel's broad gauge network.-See also:* The GWR "gauge war"* Rail gauge in Ireland* Standard gauge...
required that all new railways should be built to standard gauge
Standard gauge
The standard gauge is a widely-used track gauge . Approximately 60% of the world's existing railway lines are built to this gauge...
, the GWR had been given a number of dispensations to continue with its broad gauge, including its lines from Oxford. The question arose of where the change of gauge should occur - Oxford or Rugby - a dilemma the LNWR doubless exploited. If the latter it would mean the GWR having a section of standard gauge line, including part of its Birmingham line. As a result, in August 1849 the Rugby line was abandoned, Then in 1848 Parliament ordered that the Oxford to Birmingham line should be relaid to mixed gauge. By 1889 it was finally laid to standard gauge.
Fenny Compton station closed to passengers from 2 November 1964. The GWR line remains as the present day Didcot
Didcot Parkway railway station
Didcot Parkway is a railway station serving the town of Didcot in Oxfordshire in England. The station was opened as Didcot on 12 June 1844, and renamed Didcot Parkway on 29 July 1985 to reflect its role as a park and ride railhead....
to Chester
Chester railway station
Chester railway station is a railway station in Newtown in the city of Chester, England. It is currently operated by Arriva Trains Wales, although Merseyrail, Northern Rail and Virgin Trains also run services from the station. It is situated to the north-east of the city centre...
line. A stub of the Stratford upon Avon line remains as a freight line leading to the Kineton Military Railway
Military railways
Military railways are a form of transport communication technology used by the military forces for movement of strategically significant forces, bulk cargo or as a platform for military systems....
. The station trackwork remains much as it was, but the platforms and most of the buildings have gone. Heading north from Fenny Compton towards , the line curves gently to the right, on a course which would have taken it to Rugby via Southam. After about two miles, the line starts to curve to the left, and at this point , it is still possible to see earthworks for the abandoned Rugby line curving away to the right.